Cerro Ballena

11/20/2015

Lead author Ana Valenzuela-Toro holds an incomplete right femur of the paratype specimen (USNM 438712) belonging to the new fossil seal named Australophoca changorum. (Photo: NMNH Imaging / Smithsonian Institution)

Today, my South American colleagues and I announce the publication of a new species of fossil seal from the western coast of South America. The name of the new genus and species, Australophoca changorum, reflects its austral origin from Chile and Peru, and honors the Changos, a coastal tribe of indigenous people who lived in the Atacama (from northern Chile to southern Peru), and were short in stature. The description, published in Papers in Palaeontology, provides a scientific name for a dwarf species of true seal from the late Miocene Bahía Inglesa and Pisco formations of Chile and Peru, respectively. One of the paratype specimens that we identified was originally recovered from Cerro Ballena in the Atacama Region of Chile; the type specimen is USNM 438707.

This tiny fossil seal was smaller than a living harbor seal (Phoca vitulina), and ranks among the smallest true seals ever described, including both living and fossil ones. Interestingly, in the past ~11-3 million years, the western coast of South America seems to have been only occupied by true seals (or phocids), a fact that stands in stark difference to what we know about pinniped communities from other parts of the world, and other time in the geologic record. This unusual feature of the pinniped community in western South America fits into a broader pattern of ecological turnover seen in the fossil record of marine consumers, including pinnipeds and seabirds, throughout the Southern Hemisphere, since the late Miocene.

Figure 6, from Valenzuela-Toro et al. (2015) shows the relative size of Australophoca changorum (number 14 in the figure) to other assemblages of fossil and living pinnipeds, from other places (based on latitude) and geologic times.

Earlier this summer, we completed the installation of a unique addition to the collection in Q?rius. With help from 3D Systems, we mounted a 3D print of one of the most complete fossil whale skeletons excavated from Cerro Ballena. This 3D print – the largest of its kind in the world – was generated from a detailed laser surface scan of the original skeleton (Museo Paleontologico Caldera specimen number 677), as it was found at Cerro Ballena during road expansion of the adjacent Pan-American Highway in 2011.

This 3D print was built and donated to NMNH by 3D Systems, which constructed the print out of 40 smaller tiles, that were then assembled and painted (see video above). Our work at Cerro Ballena has demonstrated that rapid, large-scale 3D documentation provided fundamental information for our team to conclude that the marine animals preserved in four levels at Cerro Ballena were most likely killed by repeated harmful algal blooms that poisoned them repeatedly about 6-9 million years ago.

Holly Little and NDP, with 3D prints of the same specimen in different sizes. (Photo: Sarah Sulick)

02/26/2014

Co-author and collaborator Ana M. Valenzuela-Toro reveals MPC 677 (fieldnumber "B33"), with Roberto E. Yury Yáñez (new co-author on another paper), looks on. This image is part of Figure 1 in our new paper published today. (Photo: James F. Parham).

Today, my South American colleagues and I are happy to announce that our paper about our major findings at Cerro Ballena is now available open-access online at Proceedings of the Royal Society B. This work is the result of nearly four years of work aimed at understanding the world’s densest site of fossil whales in Atacama Region, Chile. (See this blog's archive here).

An image from a 3D model of three fossil whales from Cerro Ballena, colloquially called "La Familia." This image is also part of Figure 4 in our paper, out today. See more at http://cerroballena.si.edu

We pull several different lines of evidence to explain how all of these whales, and other marine vertebrates, accumulated at this amazing site: we argue that harmful algal blooms, not just once, but four times (!) were ultimately responsible. The paper is open-access, so go download and read it! And better, yet, see it digitally for yourself at our open-access bilingual (English and Spanish) website designed and built by co-author, information scientist and 3D wrangler, Holly Little:

At the site, anyone can download or interact with 3D models of the fossil baleen whale skeletons; scan GoogleEarth maps of the excavation quarries; look at a vast collection of high-resolution field photos and videos; or move from 360 degree tours of the site. There is also a FAQ (frequently asked questions) page here.

Some of the key members, all co-authors, of our team. See more at http://cerroballena.si.edu (Photo: NDP)

This work was also the result of a great collaboration: 14 co-authors, from students to professors to curators, and across museums and universities internationally. We especially thank our Chilean partner institutions at Museo Nacional de Historia Natural, Chile, the Consejo de Monumentos Nacionales, and Universidad de Chile.

02/09/2014

NMNH has just opened its doors on a brand new venue, right in the museum, that lets anyone (but especially teenagers) take part in a cutting edge experiment in informal science education: how do we make the museum, and the things happening on the inside, invisible, so that we can share the excitement of what happens in the Nation's natural history museum? This is the core idea behind Q?rius (as in "curious").

Recently, I had the chance to be a guinea pig too, and participate in the first Smithsonian Science How? webcast. The idea is a short, but live, broadcast of a NMNH scientist, partnered with a NMNH educator, sharing their scientific research, and let as broad of a K-12 audience as possible join in, via live Q&A through social media. It was great fun, and I had the opportunity to share a little bit about fieldwork in Chile, Panama and British Columbia. Check out the archived webcasts here!

Smithsonian Science How! host and producer Maggy Benson and NDP before our live taping for the AM webcast on 16 January 2014. On the table are some 3D prints, real fossils and a cast -- that creepy foot is a cast of Rodhocetus (Photo: Q?rius).

For more on what this all means, check out some terrific media pieces, including an article in the Washington Post, a clip on NPR, among others. Fossil marine mammals continue to make appearances throughout, including, below -- a 3D print, destined for the BioMuseo in Panama, held in Secretary Clough's hands during his official 3D portrait in the Castle!

10/01/2013

The Smithsonian is closed, due to a federal government shutdown. All Pyenson Lab social media, including coverage of the ongoing joint UChile expedition, will be suspended starting 12 pm EST (noon) today (1 Oct).

Also, all federally funded Smithsonian employees are forbidden, under penalty of a $5,000.00 fine and up to 2 years in a federal prison, from logging into their SI email accounts or responding to their voicemails.

Cerro Ballena as it looks today. In 2011, the scene was littered with fossil whales, everywhere. This is new blacktop, on the northbound lane that didn't exist in 2011. (Photo: H. Little).

Over this weekend, Holly Little worked with our Chilean counterparts to successfully capture a photogrammetry dataset of Cerro Ballena. Why? With the right tools and techniques, we can create a 3D point could of the entire site from a carefully collected sequence of 2D images -- taken with scale bars, precise lens and camera settings, and bit of an artist's eye. What we hope to do is create a precise and accurate 3D model of the entire roadcut as it is now, in 2013, with the northbound lane in place, running through the same quarry where many dozens of fossil whales were collected.

Holly collecting the dataset next to what I thought was a most ephemeral landmark -- the 240 m mark of the quarry from 2011 -- that has persisted through the wind, desert and sun for 3 years. (Photo: S. Acuña).

In the end, we hope that by layering our different datasets, we can enhance the narrative of our work at this site, what we found, and how we tell the story of its origin. More to come when we start digging into the dataset, but Holly's GoPro snap, below, shows the action firsthand. Great work and a big thanks to the UChile team for the help!

GoPro'ing the 3D photogrammetry dataset collection. Sergio Soto Acuña to side, documenting the documentarian, which is how we roll. (Photo: H. Little)

09/30/2013

Holly taking a break from prospecting. That's not a selfie -- this is a true field self-portrait. I think she nailed it. (Photo: H. Little)

Lab 3D dig guru Holly Little arrived safely at the Copiapo Airport, as planned, this past Thursday afternoon. She spent nearly 24 hours in transit to get there, where she then met up with Carolina and the large contingent of students from Universidad de Chile, many of whom have ongoing research projects related to the material. Holly has been with them ever since, and slowly immersing herself into what I colloquially call Gondwana time.

The team in an area called Los Negros (see Valenzuela-Toro et al. 2013). They are carefully documenting and collecting a newly discovered fossil dolphin skeleton from this locality. (Photo: H. Little)

I'll report more on Holly's work at Cerro Ballena in a bit, but I wanted to share some of her initial shakedown time learning the ropes as a vertebrate paleontologist. Holly's degrees in digital information management and archiving actually have a lot more to do finding fossils than you might think, and that's one of the many reasons she's boots on the ground. Also, there's no better education than fieldwork! So, the Chileans have been teaching her how to prospect, read rock outcrops and when to drop down and really look carefully.

Holly's first fossil find! This is a scatter of fossil penguin and seal bone fragments, eroding at the surface -- typical for the area, but hardly typical if it's your first time! (Photo: H. Little)

This post will kick off a series running for the next week that will provide live updates on our lab's joint expedition to the Atacama Region of Chile. This research builds on collaborative field work in this region that has been ongoing since 2009, and this will be the fifth field season where the Smithsonian has been involved. (Dig through this blog's archives, under the "Chile" and "Cerro Ballena" tags to read more).

As I write, 3D digitization guru Holly Little is currently en-route to Chile. She is representing the Smithsonian side, and after touching down in Chile later this morning, she will fly to Copiapó, and rendezvous with Dr. Carolina Gutstein and other Chilean members of the Universidad de Chile Red Paleontológica team. Caro et al. have just arrived with the field trucks on the long drive up from Santiago, and are probably relaxing under a cool South Pacific evening breeze.

Together, this group will collect a massive photogrammetry dataset on Cerro Ballena, as it looks today (and to compare it with our datasets from 2011) And, then the team will roll southwards, prospecting for new localities off the South American fossil highway. (I also bet there will be some good food, too). Check back here for Holly's dispatches, where she will share the adventure and also follow along on Facebook and Twitter (@PyensonLab).

Right next to the Archives Metro station is the US Navy Memorial. Look carefully and you can see El Morro near Caldera; the cleat-like Mejillones Peninsula; and then up to Peru, near Pisco with the Paracas Peninsula; and then the Illescas Peninsula. Holly's flight also crosses over the Piña locality in Panama too! (Photo: NDP).

04/14/2013

I'm happy to share the flyer for my upcoming talk at the Calvert Marine Museum on Saturday May 11th, at 2:30 pm. CMM is a regional jewel for natural and cultural history, and the Smithsonian has had a strong relationship with it for many decades. Their fossil marine mammal collections, in particular, represent a >100 year sample from the nearby Calvert Formation, reflecting the museum's long-standing relationships with citizen scientists and local collectors of all stripes. I am thrilled to be speaking at the invitation of their Fossil Club, and only wish I could stay more than the afternoon and spend a few weeks in their collections. (You can get that signed and notarized, Stephen).